Immediate care given to victims of military bus attack in Afghanistan

12 April 2011

Following an attack against a military bus in the suburb of Ahmed Shah Baba in eastern Kabul on Saturday, April 9, 2011, seven people with medium to severe injuries were treated in the emergency department of the MSF-supported Ahmed Shah Baba Hospital.

MSF medical staff worked with the hospital’s emergency room team to treat the wounded patients, who were suffering from blast-related injuries, including severe burns and open fractures.

“The patients arrived in the hospital ten minutes after the explosion and were stabilized immediately,” said Sophie Sabatier, MSF coordinator at Ahmed Shah Baba Hospital. “Five of the patients required further care, so they were transported by ambulance to larger hospitals in the center of Kabul.”

MSF has been working in Ahmed Shah Baba District Hospital since November 2009. The organization supports all the hospital’s wards, including maternity, pediatrics, surgery and emergency.

In addition to its support to Ahmed Shah Baba Hospital in Kabul, MSF teams also work in Boost Hospital in Lashkargah, Helmand Province. In both locations, MSF provides free-of-charge, life-saving medical care, working in all wards of the hospitals. MSF plans to expand its medical work to other conflict-affected areas of Afghanistan in 2011.

MSF relies solely on private donations for its work in Afghanistan and does not accept any government funding.